When Wolves take on Chorley tonight, they will do so with the hope of evading memories of 1986/87.
On that day, the Old Gold lost 3-0 to tonight’s opposition in what was one of the most embarrassing evenings in their history.
Judging by Wolves’ form, however, it wouldn’t be a great surprise if they struggled again.
On the chalkboard
Wolves have been diabolical of late and since Raul Jimenez sustained a horrific fractured skull against Arsenal, they have won only two of their last ten outings.
Nuno Santo has swapped between a four-man and three-man defence, but clearly that level of tinkering has not benefitted the side.
The Molineux outfit have kept just one clean sheet since the end of October and it’s evident that change is needed. In their last ten outings, Nuno’s side have shipped an almighty haul of 18 goals.
A large reason behind that has been the form of club captain Conor Coady, someone who has looked particularly out of sorts of late, giving away a penalty against West Brom.
The solution
When Wolves travel to Chorley this evening they must take the ruthless decision to axe their skipper. Conor Coady was ever-present in the Premier League last season and has been so far this term too.
Therefore, removing him from the starting XI would be a particularly surprising judgement. However, Nuno is clearly losing patience with the defender, substituting him for the first time in his Wolves career during their Black Country derby defeat.
The fact of the matter is that the £55k-per-week earner is becoming a bit of a liability, and after his awful display at Molineux last time out, is proving that he cannot play in a back four – a formation Nuno has used seven times since Jimenez’s injury.
It doesn’t offer the same protection as a back three and thus, Coady was caught out for a penalty by Calum Robinson.
Former referee Mark Halsey told This is Futbol: “He’s caught him twice. So as I’ve said before, you cannot go and make challenges, rash challenges like Conor Coady did in the penalty area if there’s any contact.”
Unfortunately, that’s not the first time Coady has been caught out lately. He has made just four successful tackles in his last ten outings, a tally that defies belief when you consider the position he’s playing in. It’s equally bad when you recall the aforementioned sum of goals Wolves have conceded.
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Coady’s substitution last weekend felt like a watershed moment. It would be wrong to suggest that Nuno has completely lost faith in the 27-year-old, but it showed his frustration.
Against non-league opposition in Chorley, it’s the perfect time for the manager to experiment with his backline and remove Coady from the firing line.
He needs a momentary spell out of the Wolves side.